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Sydney - Australia's leader on Tuesday voiced anger over a coal carrier which ran aground and spewed oil over the pristine Great Barrier Reef, as officials probed alleged short cuts through the world heritage site.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd called the Chinese-owned Shen Neng 1's accident "outrageous" and warned the badly damaged ship, which is stranded on a shoal, remained a serious threat to one of the world's great environmental treasures.

"This remains a serious situation. It remains a serious threat to the Great Barrier Reef," Rudd said after flying over the crash site off Australia's north-east.

He vowed to punish anyone responsible for the accident on the reef, the world's biggest and a major tourist draw which teems with marine and bird life.

Officials said dispersants had broken up a slick some 3km long after the ship grounded on Saturday, while floating booms will be used to contain any further spills.

Practical challenge

"There is no greater natural asset for Australia than the Great Barrier Reef. I take any threat to the Great Barrier Reef fundamentally seriously," Rudd said.

"From where I sit, it is outrageous that any vessel could find itself... off course, it seems, in the Great Barrier Reef.

"The practical challenge is to deal with this situation now. The practical challenge then is to bring to account those who are responsible."

The Shen Neng 1 was travelling to China from Gladstone, a port which is set to play a major role in Australia's booming trade exporting natural resources like coal and liquefied gas to Asia.

The 230 metre ship, carrying 975 tonnes of heavy fuel oil and 65 000 tonnes of coal, ran aground after hitting a shoal some 15 nautical miles outside its shipping lane at full speed.

As investigations continue, Rudd said authorities would work to prevent any further oil spills and decide how to salvage the vessel, which officials say could be stranded for weeks.

Marine Safety Queensland (MSQ) said officials would look into whether foreign ships were taking illegal short cuts through the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park.

Environmental disaster

"We've always said the vessel has ended up in an area in which it shouldn't be in the first place and how it got to that position will be the subject of a detailed investigation," MSQ general manager Patrick Quirk said.

"We're aware some ships don't always utilise best practice and that will be the subject of a commonwealth (national) review."

Quirk said officials were initially concerned the ship could break apart, creating an environmental disaster, but emergency workers on board now believe the structure is relatively stable.

"But I just want to say the risks are still there, and we're managing this on an hour-by-hour, risk-by-risk basis," he said.

Greens Senator Bob Brown, who flew over the ship on Monday, said it remained a "ticking time bomb" and called for an overhaul of shipping practices in the environmentally sensitive area.

"There needs to be pilots aboard and there should be very strict laws, including monitoring, of where these ships are," he told ABC Radio.

"Speculation is growing that a large number of these huge ships, including oil containers, move illegally through this lane near the Douglas Shoal, and nothing's been done about it by the authorities."

The number of Asia-bound tankers leaving Queensland ports is set to explode in the coming decade as Australia exports billions of dollars of its natural resources overseas.